1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to the general art of education and demonstration, and to the particular field of teaching manipulative skills.
2. Discussion of the Related Art
Tying shoes is a difficult and frustrating skill for a young child to learn. Teaching a child to tie his or her shoes is often a difficult and frustrating time for a teacher. For these reasons, many children""s shoes are not tie-type shoes or have snaps or the like on them.
However, tying their shoes is a very important skill for a child to learn. Not only is the skill, itself, important, the dexterity learned is very important. Furthermore, the boost in self-image gained from learning such a difficult and complex skill is also very valuable. Therefore, children need to learn to tie their shoes.
Therefore, there is a need for an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes.
Any system used to teach a child to tie their shoes should be appealing as well as effective. If the system is appealing, the child will be encouraged to attempt and practice the skill. Furthermore, if the system is appealing, the final result, i.e., a tied shoe, will be appealing both aesthetically and psychologically. Every time the child notes his or her tied shoes, that child will receive positive reinforcement. If the system is visually and aesthetically appealing, the positive reinforcement will be enhanced.
Therefore, there is a need for an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes that is visually appealing.
If the tied shoes are visually distinctive, the child""s attention will be drawn to the tied shoes. His or her friends will also notice the tied shoes. This will enhance the positive effects of the educational system.
Therefore, there is a need for an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes that is visually distinctive.
The positive results obtained by actually doing a task to learn and practice the task are much greater than if the learning or practice is simulated. Thus, to learn to tie one""s shoes, it is best and most effective if the learning is done on an actual shoe that is actually on the learner""s foot as opposed to a model that may be resting on a desk or the like. It is different tying a shoe that is on the learner""s foot than tying a model that is resting in front of the learner because, among other things, the view and perspective of the actual shoe on the learner""s foot will be far different from the view and perspective of a model that is not on the learner""s foot.
Therefore, there is a need for an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes that uses a shoe that is actually being worn by the learner.
It is a main object of the present invention to provide an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes that is visually appealing.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes that is visually distinctive.
It is another object of the present invention to provide an educational system for teaching a person, such as a child, how to tie their shoes that uses a shoe that is actually being worn by the learner.
These, and other, objects are achieved by an educational system that includes bi-colored laces that fit through the eyelets on tie-type shoes so that one of the colors is located on the right side of both shoes and the other color is located on the left side of both shoes when the laces are threaded through the eyelets of the shoes. A right hand marker is located on the right shoe of the shoes and has a shape of a right hand and has the color of the bi-colored laces that is located on the right hand side of the shoes. A left hand marker is located on the bottom of the outsole of the left shoe and has the color of the bi-colored laces that is located on the left hand side of the shoes. The quarter panels of each shoe also have colors thereon that match the right hand and left hand colors of the laces and the colors of the markers to further reinforce the right hand/left hand aspects of the educational system of the present invention as well as to further reinforce the shoe lace-tying lessons associated with the educational system of the present invention.
The system of the present invention makes the shoes distinctive and attractive when the shoes are worn. Every time a child looks at his or her shoes, he or she will be reminded that he or she tied his or her own shoes thereby providing positive reinforcement for the child. The colors of the system are distinctive and attractive so the shoes will be aesthetically pleasing for the child. Also, every time the child looks at the shoes, he or she will be reminded of which shoe is the left shoe and which shoe is the right shoe, again providing reinforcement for the learning process.
The system of the present invention also includes an instructional video so the child can learn at his or her own pace and convenience.
Since the learner is learning on a shoe that is actually being worn by the learner, the learning process teaches actual and practical knowledge and the learning is done from the perspective of an actual operation. Simulations are not as effective in this process as are actual situations. There is not as much self-satisfaction in successfully tying a simulated shoe as there is in successfully tying a shoe that is actually being worn at the time the shoe is tied. Even after a person learns to tie a simulated model, the person still has more learning to do to translate that learned process into a practical application of tying a shoe that is actually on the learner""s foot. The system embodying the present invention makes this last step of translating learned knowledge into practical applications superfluous and is thereby much more efficient.